June 26, 2009

America is having car troubles. The fall of General Motors and Chrysler is causing domestic manufacturers to re-think their mission and to develop the next generation of transport. The movement now appears to be headed to a greener future and perhaps with those vehicles that run mostly on electricity.

And while the automotive sector plans to introduce its first so-called plug-in vehicles that can charge from any conventional outlet by 2011, those cars will not soon make a dent in the overall market. The central question then becomes whether such cars and trucks will create for themselves a long-term spot within the transport realm or whether they will go by the way of earlier versions of the all-electric vehicle.

Cutting greenhouse gases is no longer enough to deal with global warming, says Jamais Cascio. He argues that we also have to do something more direct—and risky.
 
JUNE 15, 2009 

If we’re going to avoid climate disaster, we’re going to have start getting a lot more direct. We’re going to have to think about cooling the planet.

The concept is called geoengineering, and in the past few years, it has gone from being dismissed as a fringe idea to the subject of intense debates in the halls of power. Many of us who have been watching this subject closely have gone from being skeptics to advocates. Very reluctant advocates, to be sure, but advocates nonetheless.

June 24, 2009

Key Senate Democrats are trying to relieve restrictions to offshore drilling near Florida's coast. But some Republicans are saying the effort is too weak and will not do much to improve the nation's oil and gas future.

The Senate Energy and Natural Resources Committee passed legislation that would make it easier to lease parts of Florida's coastline to oil and gas producers. The measure, which will likely be part of a broader bill dealing with energy efficiency and renewable fuels, would cut in half the current buffer zone.

Wind Power Is A Valuable Renewable Energy Source; But How Do You Capture The Power Of The Wind And Use It Later? Xcel Energy Has A Test Project In Minnesota That The Company Hopes Will Provide Some Answers. 
 
If there is one thing the Midwest has in abundance, it is wind.  A study published in April 2009 by the American Wind Energy Association showed that Minnesota and Iowa were among the top four producers of wind energy in the United States in 2008, along with Texas and California. So it stands to reason that Xcel, already the country's biggest wind-power provider, is testing the storage of wind energy in batteries at Luverne, Minn. The Luverne project is the first of its kind in the country.

EDITOR:

The unofficial start of summer sounded the start of the race to bring clean energy jobs to Michigan and the nation through comprehensive climate and energy legislation. After several drama-filled weeks of negotiation, the House Energy and Commerce Committee emerged with a blueprint and an expanded coalition of members of Congress ready to make the U.S. the world's clean energy leader.